


The Heart of Christmas

by Klainelover1997



Category: Glee
Genre: M/M, klaine advent 2018
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-01
Updated: 2018-12-15
Packaged: 2019-09-05 03:26:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 11,926
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16802716
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Klainelover1997/pseuds/Klainelover1997
Summary: Kurt is a single father just trying to make it through the Christmas season. However, when he meets, celebrity, Blaine Anderson, his world is turned upside down. If one thing is for sure, this Christmas season will change both of their lives forever.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys! I am back to do the Klaine Advent 2018 Challenge! This year instead of doing drabbles I am planning to write a AU multi-chapter fic! I already have the main concept of the story in my head so I will do my best to fit in the words of the day! They will probably be more like little tidbits unless I’m super inspired by them. But, I am so excited to write this fic and I hope you all enjoy!

Christmas music filled the apartment of Kurt Hummel and his five-year-old daughter, Clara. It was December 1st and that meant one thing. It was time to get ready for Christmas! They had even invited Kurt’s best friend and Clara’s godmother, Rachel over to join in on the Christmas fun.

“Daddy, do we have any more ornaments?” five year old, Clara asked as she bounced happily around the living room.

“Just a few more honey,” Kurt replied. “I think we’ve just about covered this tree,” he added with a laugh. Their Christmas tree was filled with ornaments of all kinds and this year, Clara had insisted on multi-colored lights and red and gold tinsel. It was quite gaudy if Kurt was being honest but he’d do anything to make his little girl happy.

“Here Clara, we’ve still got the star. You can place it on top of the tree.” Rachel said as she held the golden star out to the little girl. Clara’s face lit up as she ran over to her aunt.

“Daddy! Daddy! Lift me up!” She squealed. Kurt grinned at his daughter and lifted the little girl up onto his shoulders. He walked closer to the tree and Clara reached as far as she could until the bottom of the tree topper connected with the top of the tree.

“There! Perfect!” Rachel said. Kurt lifted Clara from his shoulders and placed her back on the living room floor.

“It’s so pretty!” Clara said. “Daddy, can we watch “Frosty the Snowman” now!” she asked.

“Sure honey, but we can’t stay up too late. You have school tomorrow and I have to be at the hospital pretty early.” Kurt told her.

“Okay. Can we have popcorn and hot chocolate though?” Clara begged. “Please, please, pretty please!” Kurt rolled his eyes. His little girl had him wrapped around her little finger and he simply couldn’t say no.

“Sure.”

“Yay!” Clara exclaimed.

“You find the DVD and Aunt Rachel and I will go get the snacks,” Kurt replied before walking into the kitchen with Rachel following close behind. He grabbed a bag of popcorn and popped it into the microwave. Then he grabbed his tea kettle to begin warming up water for the hot chocolate.

“So, Kurt… have you been talking to anyone lately.” Rachel probed.

“You mean a guy?” Kurt asked with a suspicious look on his face. Rachel was always trying to set him up with someone. Rachel nodded. “And when would I have time to do that? I’m a single father with a five-year-old and I’m a nurse working crazy hours. What guy is going to want to come into that?”

“Oh Kurt! You’re just making excuses. I’m sure that there are plenty of guys that would love to go on a date with you. You just won’t give them a chance.”

“That is not true!”

“Prove it!” Rachel retorted before snatching Kurt’s phone off the countertop.

“Rachel, what are you doing?”

“I’m signing you up for Tinder.”

“No! No! Absolutely no!” Kurt said before trying to grab his phone back from Rachel’s hands. To get out of his reach, Rachel ran to the other side of the kitchen. “Rachel, no one meets anyone decent on Tinder. That app is purely a site to find hookups.”

“Would that be so bad?”

“Yes!” Kurt exclaimed. “I am not a hookup and never talk to a guy kind of person. Rachel, please, stop.”

“Too late. Already posted. You’re officially a tinder man.” Rachel replied, finally handing the phone over to Kurt.

“I am deleting this.”

“Just give it a chance. At least look at a few guys.” Rachel pleaded. Kurt sighed and made a face at his friend.

“Fine.”

“Yay!” Rachel squealed before running to Kurt’s side. “Okay, so if you don’t like a guy, you swipe left. And if you do, swipe right.” The first picture came up.

“Too old,” Kurt said, swiping left.

“Too young.”

“Too hairy.” Kurt grimaced looking at the picture of the man on his phone and swiping left once again. Then the fourth picture appeared. The man had beautiful golden honey brown eyes and curly dark brown hair. He had a beautiful smile and was really quite attractive. He looked somewhat familiar but Kurt couldn’t put his finger on where he had seen the man.

“OH...MY… GOD!” Rachel exclaimed looking at the picture.

“What?”

“That’s my co-star!” Rachel said. Rachel had recently landed the role of Elphaba in a revival show of Wicked. “That’s Blaine Anderson. He’s playing Fiyero.”

“Wait, like Emmy award-winning, Blaine Anderson?” Kurt asked in disbelief. Rachel nodded. Now, Kurt had figured out where he knew the man from. Blaine had been an up and coming star. He had guest starred on a bunch of shows before landing a lead role in a limited series and winning an Emmy for his work. Kurt had seen an interview where Blaine admitted he had always wanted to be on Broadway so getting the role of Fiyero was like a dream come true.

“I don’t know why I didn’t think of him before.” Rachel said. “He’s so nice and he’s single.”

“He’s also famous,” Kurt said. “There’s no way that a celebrity is going to want to date me.”

“You won’t know that for sure unless you try.” Rachel prompted. She took Kurt’s phone from his hands and looked at the profile.

“Kurt, he already super liked you.” Rachel said in disbelief. “We made this profile like five minutes ago. This is a sign. I’m swiping right.”

“Rachel-!”

“Too late!” She said with a smirk. Kurt looked at his phone and on the screen were both his and Blaine’s pictures. The top read “It’s a Match!” 

“This is going to be a good thing,” Rachel reassured him. “Now come on. We’ve planted the seed and now we wait. Come on, We have a very inpatient five-year-old waiting for us and I personally am ready to see a snowman come to life.” Rachel said. She grabbed the popcorn and headed into the living room, leaving Kurt in the kitchen. He couldn’t stop staring at the screen. Blaine was attractive, but there was no way that he’d actually want to date a single father. Kurt already knew that this Tinder match was as far as this relationship would go...he was sure of it...well pretty sure anyway.


	2. Chapter 2

“Daddy! Daddy! Wake up!” Kurt heard. He was still in bed, his eyes closed. He listened once again and heard the annoying chime of his alarm clock. Kurt opened up his eyes and blearily looked at the clock. Shit! It was 6:30! He needed to be at work in like a half an hour!

“Oh God, I overslept!” Kurt exclaimed as he jumped out of bed. He looked to his five year old who was still dressed in her pajamas. “Clara honey, go get dressed. We have to go,” he told her.

“I can pick my own outfit out?”

“Yes, just go quickly!” The little girl ran out of the room and Kurt raced to pull on his scrubs. If there was one good thing about nursing, it was not having to spend time picking out an outfit in the morning. After getting dressed, he quickly tried to fix his hair and brush his teeth. He definitely didn’t have time to make a lunch so he’d be stuck eating crappy cafeteria food today. “Clara! We gotta go, hun!” The little girl bounced out of her room dressed in a purple top and a pink tutu. Normally Kurt would make the little girl turn around and change her clothes but they simply didn’t have time. He grabbed her backpack and took her hand before rushing out the door. Clara’s school was only about three blocks away and they practically ran the whole way. They got to the front door of the school and Kurt handed his daughter her backpack. “Bye honey, I’ll pick you up after school.”

“Bye Daddy, love you!”

“Love you too honey,” Kurt said. He made sure Clara got into the building and then got ready to start his second mad dash of the morning. He hopped on the subway and headed uptown to Mount Sinai Hospital. He continued to check his watch. He was going to get so much shit for being late. It was about 7:05 when Kurt finally made it into the hospital. He quickly clocked in and got the delightful message saying that he was late and his pay would be docked. “Oh God, what am I gonna do without that extra 3 dollars?” he murmured angrily.

After clocking in, he hurried onto the unit to get the report on his patients. He looked at the list of who had been working night shift. Crap…Santana. She did not like to be kept waiting. He found her back at the nurses’ station.

“Well, good morning sleeping beauty.” She sneered.

“I’m sorry.” Kurt apologized as he grabbed a paper from the printer. “I didn’t hear my alarm.”  
“Excuses excuses,” Santana replied. “It’s a good thing you got that extra sleep because you’ve got quite an assignment today.”

“Oh God, how bad?”

“Definitely not great.”

“Fine, let’s just start,” Kurt told her.

“Room 506, Mary Ellen Bishop. She’s here for a cardiac catheterization today.”

“So no food or water,” Kurt added

“Yes, and she is quite pissed about it. She’s sneaky and she will try to get anything out of you.”

“Great. What time is her procedure?”

“8 o’clock,” Santana replied. Kurt nodded and listened to the rest of his report. He also had a 90-year-old with dementia who was a major flight risk. He had tried to sneak out of his room twice just during report. He also had another patient who had someone sitting in his room because he had threatened to choke himself with oxygen tubing. It was going to be a rough day. After Santana left, Kurt started his day. He collected medications for his patients and assessed them to make sure they were doing alright. Around 8 o’clock, a person from patient transport came up for the woman in room 506.

“Perfect.” Kurt thought. He needed a break from her.

“You have to go with her.” the transporter told him.

“Of course,” Kurt replied, even though he really didn’t want to go. “Are you all ready to go Mary?” he asked.

“It’s about damn time!” the woman replied nastily.

“Well, let’s get you situated and we’ll head down. The procedure will be done before you know it and then you’ll be able to get something to eat and drink.” Kurt told her. They got the woman situated on the stretcher and made their way down to cardiac cath. When they got there another nurse came up to them.

“I’m so sorry. We tried to call you. An emergency just came in so we have to push her procedure.”

“Oh…Okay.” Kurt replied. “Well Mary, we got to go for a little walk. What are you gonna do?” he added shrugging his shoulders. Emergencies happened so you just had to learn to roll with things. Mary Ellen didn’t seem to be as accepting.

“How long am I gonna have to wait?” she whined when they got back to her room on the unit.

“I’m not sure,” Kurt confessed. “It’ll depend on how long the emergency takes.”

“That’ll be like five hours!” She groaned. “All I know is I NEED SOMETHING TO DRINK!”

“I know, but we still can’t give you anything before your procedure.”

“But my throat is so dry! This is ridiculous!”

“Okay, I’ll see what I can do,” Kurt told her. He walked out to the nurses’ station and sighed. The best he could do was give her a little green sponge on a stick that would let her at least wet her mouth. He filled a little cup of water and stuck the sponge in it before walking back into the patient’s room.

“Okay, you can use this sponge to wet your mouth but don’t drink the water,” Kurt told her. The patient gave him a nasty look and tried the sponge.

“This a sponge!” she yelled.

“Yes,” Kurt thought. He had just said that.

“This doesn’t do anything!!”

“I’m sorry but this is the best I can do for you.” The woman’s eyes narrowed and in a deep nasty voice she said, “I think you better leave now.” Then, she took the little green sponge and threw it at Kurt’s face. Kurt just nodded, picked up the sponge and threw it in the garbage can. He’d have to go back in eventually but he needed a break so he didn’t lose his job for killing a patient. The rest of the day went by slowing until finally it was 3 o’clock and Kurt was practically out the door. He gave report and then gathered his things. While leaving to go pick Clara up from school, he got a text from Rachel.

It said: “Hey I’m so sorry, but I left my phone charger at your house. Clara should have it because I let her borrow it. It should be in her backpack. Would you be able to bring it to the theatre? My phone is going to die.” Kurt rolled his eyes. All he wanted to do was go home. But, being the nice friend that he was, Kurt decided that he’d bring Rachel her charger. First, he walked to Clara’s school to pick her up. Upon seeing her father, Clara’s eyes lit up and she ran out to give him a hug.

“Hi honey,” Kurt said as he embraced his daughter.

“Daddy, look what I made at school!” She said excitedly as she held up a picture that she had drawn.

“It’s beautiful sweetheart,” he told her. “Come on. Let’s go. We have to give your Aunt Rachel something at the theatre and Daddy desperately needs a coffee.” Kurt truly wanted something a bit stronger than coffee but that would have to wait until Clara was asleep tonight. Hand in hand, they walked through the streets of New York until they reached the nearest Starbucks.

“Hi, what can I get for you?” the woman asked.

“I’ll have a venti cinnamon dolce latte,” Kurt told her. “And I’ll take one cinnamon bun for her.” The woman nodded and put together their order.

“Here you go, sir”

“Thank you,” Kurt replied, taking the coffee. He took his first sip and let out a sigh of relief. God, he didn’t realize how much he had truly needed caffeine. After that, the two made their way to the Gershwin theatre and Kurt looked for Rachel. There was no one on stage so they must have been on a break. Clara was quicker to spot Rachel.

“Aunt Rachel!” She exclaimed before breaking free from Kurt’s grasp and running to her aunt. Rachel beamed at the little girl and lifted her up once she made it to her arms.

“Here’s my favorite girl!” Rachel said.

“We brought you your phone charger,” Clara replied as she dug the white cord out of her pink Barbie backpack.

“Perfect. You are the best kiddo.” Rachel told her. Kurt walked over to the two of them. “Thank you so much for bringing it, Kurt.”

“It’s fine. But I’ll remember this next time I need something.” he joked as he set his coffee down on the table. Suddenly, Kurt felt his heart drop when he saw a familiar looking man out of the corner of his eye. It was Blaine Anderson, his tinder match. The man walked over to them and tapped Rachel on the corner.

“Hey Rachel, Gus wants us on stage in 2 minutes to rehearse a scene,” he said.

“No problem,” she replied. “Blaine, this is my friend, Kurt and his daughter, Clara.”

“It’s nice to meet you,” Blaine said extending his hand towards Kurt.

“Nice to meet you too,” Kurt replied nervously.

“I’ve seen you on TV!” Clara exclaimed. Blaine knelt down to her level and talked directly to the little girl.

“You did?” he asked.

“Yes! You’re famous,” she told him.

“I wouldn’t go that far,” Blaine replied with a laugh. He looked around to the table and spotted a coffee, figuring it must be his. Blaine had a bad habit of misplacing things. He picked the coffee up and before Kurt could say something, Blaine took a sip.

“Oh that’s my-” Kurt began. Upon seeing, Kurt’s face, Blaine immediately stopped and set the drink down.

“Oh God, I am so sorry.” Blaine apologized. “I thought it was mine. I have a bad habit of leaving my coffee everywhere.” He reached for his wallet. “Here let me-”

“Not it’s really okay,” Kurt replied. “Mistakes happen.”

“I feel awful,” Blaine replied. “You have to let me make it up to you. Maybe I could buy you a replacement coffee sometime…” he asked timidly.

“Um yeah…that…that would be nice,” Kurt answered. Suddenly they heard a man yell from the stage. “Blaine, Rachel, time to rehearse!”

“I guess I better get going. See you around. And, I am so sorry about the coffee.” Blaine apologized before heading to the stage. Kurt watched Blaine walk away and then he looked to Clara and Rachel. Rachel was beaming.

“That sure sounded like plans for a date to me…” She whispered.

“He just feels bad,” Kurt replied.

“Sure…All I’m gonna say is I told you so.” Rachel replied with a smirk before heading off to set. Kurt took Clara’s hand and his coffee that now had celebrity DNA on it. Man, he could sell this coffee on eBay if he really wanted to. Kurt honestly just couldn’t believe it. He had just met Blaine Anderson…and he had kinda asked Kurt on a date. The day had sure started terribly but at least it ended with positive.


	3. Chapter 3

“Alright guys, let’s break for tonight”

Blaine Anderson let out a sigh when he heard those words. By the end of rehearsal, Blaine was so ready to head home. He was exhausted and had never realized that working on Broadway would be so tiring. He walked over to his stuff and started packing up his things to leave.

“See you tomorrow, Blaine,” Rachel called with a wave.

“Bye!” He called back as he watched the short, brown-haired girl walk away. After, he pulled on his sweatshirt and headed for the stage door. Blaine had found that if he didn’t go out the back, the paparazzi was on him immediately. After opening the door, Blaine groaned when he saw that it was raining. He pulled his hood up over his head and headed out into the rain. His apartment building wasn’t far from the theatre so Blaine just figured he’d walk quickly rather than take a cab.

He had only made it about five minutes when he felt like he was being followed. His suspicions were confirmed when he heard the familiar clicks of the cameras behind him. “Blaine, Blaine, how you doing man?” the one paparazzi yelled after him.

“Doing fine man. Just pretty wet.” He joked, still walking as quickly as he could. Normally, Blaine had accepted that paparazzi was just a part of his new normal, but today with the rain, he just didn’t want to put up with them. Luckily, he could see his apartment building in sight.

“Blaine, can we just get one shot?” the man called.

“Not today. Maybe when we have better weather.” He answered. His doorman, Ralph was waiting for him when he got to the front door.

“Thanks, Ralph, please make sure these guys don’t follow me,” Blaine said quietly before entering the building.

“Of course Mr. Anderson,” Ralph replied. He stood in front of the door and prevented the paparazzi from getting past. Finally, Blaine felt like he could breathe. He got on the elevator and headed up to his apartment. At this point, Blaine was practically soaked and couldn’t wait until he could change into some fresh clothes. He fumbled with his key before finally getting the door open. It only took five seconds before he was attacked by a large mass of golden fur.

“Okay Maggie, It’s me! Calm down!” Blaine said with a laugh as he pushed the dog off of him. He leaned down and pet the dog until she was finally able to relax. After, Blaine headed into his bedroom and changed into a pair of grey sweatpants and a dark blue sweatshirt. His curly hair was already breaking free from the gel that normally held it down, so Blaine finished off the job and washed the rest off. “Come on Mags, let’s go get some dinner and watch some TV.” The dog followed behind her owner as he made in his way into the kitchen. Blaine got Maggie her food and then began examining the contents of his fridge, looking for something that he could consider dinner. The best option that he came up with was leftover Chinese, so that would have to do.

Suddenly there was a huge crack of thunder outside. The weather was really getting nasty outside. Maggie whined and began to cower. “Come here, girl,” Blaine said. He knew that she always got scared during thunderstorms. With his Chinese in hand, Blaine walked over and settled him on the couch with Maggie nestled into his side. He turned on the TV and settled for an episode of “Project Runway” that he had seen a few times when suddenly another crack of thunder rang out. Then, it was completely dark in Blaine’s apartment.

“Damn it…” Blaine muttered. He got up from the couch and began walking blindly through his kitchen to find some spare candles. “Ouch!” Blaine yelled as he slammed his toe into the fridge. “Stupid fridge, stupid thunderstorm…” he murmured. He found his extra candles and lit them so he’d have enough light to at least get back to the sofa. Once sitting down, Blaine looked around.

“Well, what do we do now?” he asked Maggie. The dog did not respond, but simply wagged her tail. Blaine became to run through what they had done in rehearsal that day and that made him think of his embarrassing first meeting with Rachel’s very attractive friend. When Blaine had first seen him, he thought he’d looked familiar. He figured he must have seen a picture of Kurt and his daughter on Rachel’s facebook. He opened up his phone and started going through various apps. Then, he came to his Tinder app...he had forgotten about that app. He opened it up and there under matches he saw Kurt’s picture. “What a small world…” Blaine murmured. He clicked on Kurt’s profile and looked through his pictures. He couldn’t help but smile when he got to a picture of Kurt with Clara on his shoulders. Both of them looked so happy. He clicked the message and let his thumbs linger over the keys. Should he message Kurt? He did make a fool of himself today, but...he was just so attractive. Blaine simply couldn’t help himself.

He typed, “Hey It’s Blaine from the theatre…” before quickly erasing it.

“Idiot, he met you today. He knows who you are.” Blaine murmured. Trying again he typed out “Any chance you’d be interested in getting a replacement coffee with me. I really am sorry about today.” He took a deep breath and then sent the message. He couldn’t believe he had just done that. Blaine sat on the couch in anticipation as he waited for Kurt to reply. A few minutes went by and no response.

“Whatever...He’s got a kid. He’s probably busy.” Blaine told Maggie. “Plus I was an idiot. I wouldn’t want to go out with me.” Suddenly, he felt his phone vibrate and his heart began to beat rapidly. On his lock screen was a message from Kurt.

“I think that can be arranged. Just name a time and place :)”


	4. Chapter 4

Kurt and Clara were so close to getting home before they got stuck in the crazy rain. They ran up the front steps into their apartment building, trying to seek refuge from the droplets. “Whew...gosh that rain is terrible.”

“Daddy, I’m cold,” Clara whined, her teeth chattering.

“I know honey. We’ll change into some pajamas when we get upstairs.” They climbed the two flights of stairs to their apartment and went inside. “Go pick some jammies out and put your wet clothes in the laundry room, okay sweetie,” Kurt told his daughter. The little girl nodded before heading off to her room. Kurt went into his own room and stripped off his wet clothes. He grabbed a pair of red flannel pajama pants and a long sleeved black t-shirt. Kurt placed his wet clothes on the bathroom floor and looked in the mirror. Upon seeing his crazy rain-soaked hair, Kurt grimaced. “That is what I call a bad hair day,” he murmured. While standing in the bathroom, he heard his phone go off. “I swear if this is Rachel…”

He walked over to the bed and picked up his cell phone and his heart began to beat faster. It was a notification from Tinder. As far as Kurt knew, he only had one match...and that was Blaine. He opened up the app and there next to Blaine’s picture was a notification. Kurt clicked on it and read the message.

It said: “Any chance you’d be interested in getting a replacement coffee with me. I really am sorry about today.” Kurt started to panic. Blaine was definitely asking him on a date...right? Or was he just still sorry from earlier? To Kurt, Blaine’s message seemed more like an excuse to message him. He left the message on read for a few seconds, not wanting to seem too eager. Instead, he chose to dial Rachel’s phone number.

The phone continued to ring until Kurt hear, “Hello,” Rachel answered.

“Rachel, I am having a crisis.” Kurt began.

“What? What’s going on? Is Clara okay?” she asked.

“She’s fine,” Kurt responded immediately. “It’s - well - Blaine... he messaged me.” Rachel let out an excited little scream.

“Well, what did he stay?!?”   
“He asked me out for coffee to replace the one he drank,” Kurt told her. “I can’t tell if he’s just trying to be nice or....”

“Kurt...you know I love you but you are oblivious. He clearly likes you!” Rachel said.

“So I should go out with him?”

“Of course! He’s nice, a great actor and he’s famous. He’s a catch by any standards.”   
“I know...I know. I just haven’t dated since...well you know…” Kurt said.

“It’s been five years Kurt. You’re allowed to be happy.”

“I know...I know. You’re right. But what about Clara?” Kurt muttered.

“What about her?” Rachel asked. “I think she’d be excited for you.”

“But I don’t want to bring someone into her life who might not stick around,” Kurt added.

“You just can’t live that way, Kurt. You can’t not take a shot because you’re afraid of it not working out.” Rachel told him. Kurt knew at that moment that she was right. He really liked Blaine. He owed it to himself to try this.

“Okay… I’ll text him back.”

“Yes! Okay, whenever your date is I am coming over and helping you pick out an outfit. And, me and my favorite goddaughter are going to have a girls night.” Rachel told him. “Ooh, I’m so excited!”

“Okay, it sounds like a plan,” Kurt replied. “Rach...tell me one more time that this is the right thing to do.”

“This is absolutely the right thing to do. Go get your man Kurt.” And with that, she hung up. Kurt took a deep breath and walked out into the hallway. He was met with Clara’s sad little face.

“Daddy, the rain ruined my papers.” she pouted.

“Oh honey, I’m sorry,” Kurt said as he walked closer to the little girl. “We’ll try to dry them off okay. Or you can make new pictures. How about some hot chocolate to warm you up and make you feel better?” Clara nodded and followed her father into the kitchen.

“Can I have marshmallows?” she asked.

“Yes,” Kurt replied with a smile.

“And whipped cream? Please daddy.”

“Yes, you may have whipped cream too,” Kurt told his daughter. While he got the hot chocolate ready, Kurt looked over at his daughter.

“Clara, honey, I have a question for you,” Kurt said. “How would you feel if Daddy went out on a date?”

“What would you do?”

“Probably just get some coffee.”

“That kinda sounds boring,” Clara replied. “Who would you go with?”

“Well, the man we met today at the theatre, Blaine. He asked me.”   
“Oh, I like him,” Clara told Kurt. “He’s nice. But you should do something more fun than just drink coffee. You should go ice skating!”

“Well, maybe if we go out again.” Kurt laughed. “But you’re really okay with it?”

“Yes,”

“And you know that this will not change anything between us? You are still the most important person in the world to me.” Kurt told her.

“Well obviously. I am pretty great.” Clara replied with a smile and Kurt couldn’t help but laugh. He sure had a pretty sassy daughter, but he wouldn’t change her for the world.

“Well alright, Miss Sassypants, what do you say we take these hot chocolates into the living room and find a good Christmas movie to watch?” Clara nodded and followed Kurt into the living room where they settled themselves on the couches.

Kurt found “The Santa Clause” on TV and before he knew it Clara had fallen asleep nestled into his side. Kurt picked up the little girl and carried her to bed and gently placed her onto the mattress. He covered her with her blankets before placing a kiss on her forehead and whispering “I love you.”

Now that Clara was finally in bed, Kurt knew it was time to reply to Blaine. He opened up Tinder and clicked on Blaine’s message once again. “This is gonna be a good thing,” he whispered to himself.

He typed out “I think that can be arranged. Just name a time and place :)” Kurt felt butterflies in his stomach as the whooshing sound of the sent message erupted from his phone. This was gonna be a good thing. He knew it...He just knew it.


	5. Chapter 5

After texting back and forth a few times, Kurt and Blaine decided on dinner at a local restaurant instead of coffee. As the days went by, Kurt felt himself getting more and more nervous. Finally, today was the day. Kurt had just gotten off from his shift at the hospital and had picked up Clara from school. “Is Aunt Rachel coming over tonight?”

“Yup, she’s going to stay with you while I go on my date tonight,” Kurt replied.

“Yay!” Clara exclaimed. Kurt knew that his daughter loved her Aunt. Kurt also loved Rachel but when the two of them got together, crazy things tended to happen. One time after a night of babysitting from Rachel, Clara decided that she was now obsessed with Barbara Streisand and wanted to be called Barbara. That was a difficult one to explain when Clara’s teachers called because she was insisting on being called a different name.

Kurt and Clara walked up the stairs into their apartment building and went upstairs. When Kurt got to the front door, he was surprised to see that it was already unlocked. “Clara, stay in the hallway for a second,” Kurt told her. He snuck into the apartment and looked around. He didn’t see anyone. He grabbed a bat that they kept by the front door and crept down the hallway. He could hear something coming from his bedroom. He examined the room and then suddenly, Rachel popped out of the closet, scaring Kurt practically to death.

“Geez! Rachel! What the hell are you doing in here?” Kurt said, clutching his chest because his heart was beating so fast.

“Looking for an outfit for your date!” Rachel replied. “You only have two hours. You need to pick up the pace.”

“I never should have given you a key.” Kurt groaned before going through the doorway.

“Wait where are you going?” Rachel called.

“I’m getting Clara,” Kurt replied. “I thought there was a burglar in my house so I was trying to keep my child safe.” Kurt got Clara from the hallways and the two of them walked back into Kurt’s bedroom.

“Perfect, my little helper is here.” Rachel said. “Go in the closet and help me find your Daddy the perfect outfit.”

“So far you’ve found nothing suitable?” Kurt asked.

“Not really. You’ve got quite the ribbon collection in the bottom of your closet thought.” Rachel said. Kurt gave her a wide-eyed look that said “shut up,” Those ribbons were Kurt’s secret Christmas stash and he really didn’t want his five-year-old to find it and put the pieces together that he and Santa just miraculously had the same ribbons. “Anyway, I was thinking these pants and this shirt.” Rachel said, holding up the clothes.

“Before I put any of these clothing on my body, I need to shower,” Kurt told her. “I smell like hospital…we’ll keep it at that and not got go into the specifics.” After that, Kurt disappeared into the bathroom and shower. When he reemerged fully clean, there were two different outfits set out on his bed.

“So we have narrowed it down to these two looks - one is more casual and the other is more formal.” Kurt looked back and forth between the two outfits.

“I think I’ll go with the more casual one,” Kurt told them. “We’re just going to dinner and it’s not super fancy. You know…low stress kind of situation.”

“Fair enough. We have a winner.” Rachel said. “Clara, I think we should go into the living room and wait for the big reveal.” She took the little girls hand and led her into the living room. Kurt couldn’t help but laugh at those two. He pulled on the outfit that they had chosen and finished up his hair before looking in the mirror. He had to admit, he did look pretty good. Those girls did have a good eye for fashion. He grabbed his wallet and jacket and then went into the living room.

“Ooh, you look awesome Kurt!” Rachel squealed.

“I like your shirt Daddy,” Clara told him.

“Thank you,” Kurt replied. “What are you girls going to do tonight?” he asked.

“Oh you know, just girl stuff,” Rachel replied. “Right girly? We’ll do nails and hair. Maybe have a fashion show of our own and then we’ll end the night with a Disney movie. Also, no girl night is complete without pizza.” Kurt couldn’t help but laugh. His daughter was beaming.

“Alright, but bedtime is still 9 o’clock.” Kurt reminded them.

“Yeah, we’ll see,” Rachel replied. Kurt rolled his eyes.

“Okay, I’m gonna go. I love you.” He said to Clara.

“Bye Daddy, have a fun date,” she replied sweetly. Kurt pulled on his jacket and then headed out into the cold. He walked the few blocks to the restaurant and felt himself getting more and more nervous. When he finally reached the restaurant, Kurt stopped and looked in through the windows. He could see Blaine sitting at a table by himself. He’s looked so cute…maybe even a little nervous too. Kurt took a deep breath. This was going to be the beginning of something great…he just knew it.


	7. Chapter 6

Kurt was still outside the restaurant, trying to force himself to go inside. He never used to be this nervous about going on dates. It had just been so long and he really liked Blaine...even though he really didn’t know him that well. “There’s no backing out now.” he muttered as he pushed open the front door to restaurant and made his way over to where Blaine was sitting.

“Hi, I hope you weren’t waiting long.” Kurt said, as he tapped Blaine on the shoulder. 

“No, no!” Blaine said immediately standing up. “I just got here.” 

“Good.” Kurt replied. With that, they were left awkwardly standing up at their table. “I-uh-I guess we better sit.” 

“Oh yes…” Blaine said immediately. “Of course.” They both took their seats at the table and still couldn’t find something to talk about. “So...umm..how have you been?” 

“Good.” Kurt replied. “Busy.” he added. “You know work and my daughter definitely keep me on my toes.” 

“I bet.” Blaine agreed. “How old is your daughter again?” 

“She’s five going on fifteen.” Kurt joked. “She is a little too grown up for my taste.” 

“Oh that sounds interesting.” Blaine replied. Once again there was silence between the two men. They both checked their phones and didn’t seem to know what to say. Then Blaine spoke up. “Can I say something?” Kurt nodded. “This whole sit down dinner thing is not me. I-I think I have an idea, if you trust me.” 

“At this point, I’m up for anything.” Kurt replied. The two men through on their coats and made their way out of the restaurant. “So where are we headed?”

“Follow me,” Blaine said. He instinctively reached out and grabbed Kurt’s hand and there was a moment between them that felt electric. After realizing his action was a bit forward, Blaine pulled his hand away. “Sorry I -uh.” Kurt stopped him and with a smile, regrabbed Blaine’s hand.

“Lead the way.” The two men made their way through the crowded New York streets until they made it to Bryant Park. 

“This is one of my favorite places.” Blaine said. “I-I thought that maybe you’d like to go for a skate.” 

“Oh-I haven’t skated in years.” Kurt confessed. 

“Oh-we-we don’t have to then-” 

“No, Blaine. I think it’ll be fun.” Kurt interjected. “I must prepare you though. I’ve never been terribly athletic so I may end up on my butt.” 

“I’ll make sure to help you up then.” Together, they walked hand in hand to the counter and rented their ice skates. They sat down on a bench and laced up their shoes. Blaine walked out to the rink first. He stepped right onto the ice like it was nothing and began skating around. Kurt on the other hand wasn’t feeling very comfortable. “Are you coming?” Blaine asked as he skated over to the opening. 

“Yes…” Kurt said tentatively. He took a step on the ice and then had to grab onto the wall to keep from falling. 

“Whoa there.” Blaine said as he reached out to help Kurt. 

“Maybe I’m worse at this than I thought.” Kurt admitted. 

“You just have to give it a chance.” Blaine said. “Here, I’ll help you.” He took Kurt’s hand while Kurt kept his other hand on the wall. “Do you trust me?” Kurt took a deep breath, looked into Blaine’s eyes and then let go of the wall. Slowly he started moving his feet and they began to skate. “There you go! Now you’re getting it.” Blaine said. 

“Yeah-yeah I am!” Kurt said with excitement. They continued to skate for a while. Suddenly a group of teenage boys sped by them without warning, which surprised both men. Kurt lost his balance and fell to the ice and happened to sweep Blaine’s leg and bring him down as well. 

“Oww! God…” Blaine said as he landed on his butt. He looked over at Kurt who was lying directly on his back. “Kurt, are you okay?” he asked. Kurt didn’t say anything. He just started to laugh, which made Blaine begin to laugh. 

“Well...that was embarrassing.” Kurt got out between giggles. “I-I think in the interest of not ending up in the ER tonight that maybe we’d ought hang up our skates for the night.” 

“I think my bruised bottom agrees with you.” Blaine said with a laugh. Together, they made their way off of the ice and gave their skates back. Then they started to walk through the park. Since they hadn’t actually gotten to dinner, both men were pretty hungry. They got a big bag of kettle corn and two hot chocolates from a street vendor and decided it might be fun to take a ride through Central Park in one of the horse drawn carriages. Before they knew it, Kurt and Blaine were cuddled up next to one under a red fleece blanket as they strolled down the street. 

“Tonight has been really nice.” Kurt said. “I-I’m glad we ditched the dinner plans.” 

“Me too.” Blaine agreed. “I-I’ve had a lot of fun with you tonight.” 

“This kettle corn was definitely a great idea too.” Kurt said. “It’s been ages since I’ve had some. I just wish I could eat it without taking my arms out from under the blanket. I’m freezing!”   
“Here.” Blaine said. He reached into the bag and pulled out a handful of kettle corn. “Open up.” Kurt happily obliged and ate the popcorn as Blaine put it into his mouth. They even switched later on so Blaine had some time to be warm under the blanket too. As the carriage ride went on, Kurt began to get tired. Working and getting up so early to get Clara to kindergarten started to catch up with him. He felt his eyelids begin to droop and his head began to drop onto Blaine’s shoulder. It caught Blaine off guard at first but he didn’t move away. He just allowed Kurt’s head to fall on his shoulder and motioned for the carriage driver to keep going. After a little bit, the carriage hit a bump and Kurt was woken up. 

“What?- Where am I?” he panicked. Kurt looked and was shocked to see Blaine’s face. “Oh god, I fell asleep on our date. What kind of person does that?” 

“Kurt, calm down. It’s okay...It-it wasn’t that bad.” Blaine said. “You’re pretty cute when you sleep” he added with a nervous smile. Kurt blushed and then checked his watch. It was getting pretty late. 

“I-I should get home. It’s getting pretty late.” Kurt said. 

“Okay,” Blaine agreed. They had the carriage stop and Blaine paid the man. Then they walked back to Kurt’s apartment and stopped outside of the front door. 

“I had a really, really nice time.” Kurt said to Blaine. 

“So, did I.” Blaine said. “Do-do you think you’d like to do this again sometime?” 

“Yeah-that would be great.” Kurt replied. “Alrighty then...Goodnight Blaine” 

“Goodnight, Kurt.” Blaine replied. Both men lingered near one another for a moment. All Kurt wanted to do was lean in and place a kiss onto Blaine’s lips, but he pulled away. This was going really fast. So instead, he just headed into his building and made his way to his apartment. After unlocking the door, he saw Rachel and Clara asleep on the couch under Clara’s Frozen fleece blanket. Kurt went over and gently lifted the little girl up and took her to her bedroom. Then he went back over and gently shook Rachel. “Rach- Rach, time to wake up?” The brunette's eyelids fluttered and she woke up. 

“Kurt…” she said softly. “How was your date?” she muttered sleepily. 

“It-It was pretty magical.” Kurt confessed. 

“I knew you two would hit it off.” Rachel said excitedly, her eyelids still drooping. 

“We can talk about it in the morning Rach. Go back to sleep. You can stay the night.” 

“Thank you. Love you.” Rachel said before stretching back out on the couch and cuddling back under the Frozen fleece blanket. Kurt smiled and picked up another blanket and placed it over his friend before going into his own bedroom. Kurt changed into his own pajamas and crawled into bed. Tonight had been so wonderful and Kurt liked Blaine more than he ever thought was possible. There was just something so alluring about Blaine...Kurt couldn’t put his finger on exactly what it was but whatever it was...he liked it.


	8. Chapter 7

Kurt and Blaine had been going out for a while now when Blaine finally got up the courage to ask about Clara. “So, when am I going to get to meet Clara?” Blaine asked. Kurt coughed on the bagel he was eating and looked up. 

“What?” he asked. 

“Your daughter, Clara. When do I get to meet here?”

“I-uhh- It’s just kind of soon.” Kurt replied. “Plus, you’ve technically already met her.” 

“That was just for a second and didn’t really count.” Blaine replied. “I barely said a word to her.” He paused for a second. “Do...Do you not trust me with her?” 

“No Blaine- It’s not that.” Kurt started. “Of course I trust you. I just don’t like her to get too attached.”

“Oh I-I get it.” Blaine said, a little disappointed. Kurt looked at Blaine’s sad face and couldn’t help but feel bad. Over their past few dates, Blaine had proven that he was a really good guy. He was kind and smart and a true gentleman. But, Kurt had always been cautious when it came to Clara. He never wanted her to get too attached to anyone who Kurt was unsure whether they would stick around or not. However, this whole relationship had been a gamble and Blaine had proved that he wanted to interact with Clara so that was a good sign. Maybe he owed it to Blaine to let him give this a shot. 

“You know what...I think that Clara would love to meet you...officially anyway.” 

“Really?” Blaine asked. “I-I already have so many ideas of what we can do!” Kurt laughed. He could see how excited Blaine was...and that made him pretty excited. Two days later, Kurt was at home with Clara as they were getting ready for their day with Blaine. He had only gotten one text from the man about what they would be doing. It simply said. “Dress warmly :)” 

Suddenly, they heard a knock on the door. “It’s Blaine!” Clara exclaimed and ran to the front door. She opened it and Blaine was dressed in snow pants and red puffy jacket with a red hat on his head. 

“Hi Clara, Are you ready for today?” 

“I’m so excited!” Clara replied. “Where are we going?” 

“Well, you’ll just have to see.” Blaine replied. “Where’s your daddy?” 

“In the kitchen.” Blaine took the little girl’s hand and walked her into the kitchen. Kurt turned around and saw his boyfriend. 

“Whoa...when you said dress warmly...you meant it.” Kurt said in disbelief. He had a feeling his black peacoat and his jeans wouldn’t be enough to keep him warm. 

“Clearly, you didn’t take me seriously enough.” Blaine repled. “You’re going to freeze your butt off.” 

“Yeah daddy, you’re gonna freeze!” Clara teased. 

“Note taken.” Kurt amended. “I will go and change.” After that Kurt disappeared and went to put on warmer clothes. He smiled when he heard Blaine and Clara giggling in the living room. After changing, he headed out and joined his boyfriend and his daughter and just like that their day began. Blaine’s first stop of the day was Central Park for some sledding. They had luckily had a fresh blanket of snow from the previous night. “Blaine! I want you to come with me.” 

“Alrighty!” Blaine said. He grabbed the sled and then lugged it up the hill while following Clara. He set the sled down and and sat down on the back. “Here, you sit in the front. Now hold on tight.” Blaine pushed off with his feet and sent the sled plummeting down the hill. Kurt stood at the bottom and captured the joy on their faces as they went down the snow. 

“That was awesome!” Clara exclaimed. “Daddy! It’s your turn.” 

“Oh no,” Kurt replied. “Daddy is just fine watching you two.” 

“No!!” The five year old whined as she walked behind her father and began pushing him up the hill. “You! Have! To! Go!” Kurt sighed knowing that he would never win this battle with his daughter. 

“Well, am I going by myself?” Kurt asked. 

“No.” Clara replied. “Blaine is going with you.” 

“You’re not going with me?” The five year old shook her head no. Kurt looked over at Blaine. 

“I’m up for it if you are.” Blaine said with a smirk. “Do you want to sit in the front or the back?” Kurt rolled his eyes and walked towards the sled. 

“Back” Kurt replied as he indicated for Blaine to sit in front of him. Blaine obliged and sat down. When they were both ready, Kurt picked up his feet and gravity sent the two of them rushing down the hill. However, this ride didn’t go as well as Blaine and Clara’s did. Either Kurt or Blaine accidently put their foot down without realizing it and sent them both flying off the sled, Kurt landed on top of Blaine. 

“Oh my God! I’m sorry!” Kurt said. Blaine didn’t reply because he was still trying to catch his breath. He coughed a bit as Kurt rolled off of him. “Are you okay?” 

“I’m good.” Blaine choked out. “I might be good with the sledding though.” 

“I think that would be good.” Kurt replied as he helped Blaine up. 

“I do have our next stop of the day already planned though.” Blaine said. “I know you and Clara are gonna love it.” he added with a smile. After a short ride across town, they pulled up to a cute little area with lots of cottages, snow and even reindeer. 

“Where are we?” Kurt asked, looking out the window. 

“We are at Santa’s village!” Blaine said. 

“There’s reindeer!” Clara explained. She practically hopped out of her carseat as soon as the car stopped. “Daddy! Daddy! Can we go see them?”

“Yes, just hang on a second.” Kurt said with a laugh. He took his daughter's hand and before they could move, she stopped and reached for Blaine’s hand. 

“Come on Blaine! Hurry up!” the little girl said, her voice full of excitement. Together, the three of them walked towards the reindeer. Blaine paid and handed Clara a cup full of reindeer food. “Why are these reindeer here? Shouldn’t they be at the North Pole with Santa?” Clara asked while she fed one of the reindeer. 

“Well honey, there are lots of reindeer, but only some of them work for Santa.” Kurt told her. 

“So these are like the back up reindeer?”

“Sure.” Kurt replied. Clara seemed satisfied with the answer and turned her attention back towards feeding the reindeer. 

“Come feed this one with me Blaine!” Clara exclaimed as she grabbed Blaine by the hand and ran him over to another reindeer. Kurt watched with a smile as Blaine interacted with Clara. Seeing the two of them together made Kurt feel embarrassed for even worrying about how they would take to one another. Clara seemed to love Blaine and Kurt could see that Blaine was just as in love with her. That wasn’t as surprising though. Clara did seem to have that effect on people. 

After feeding the reindeer, Kurt, Blaine and Clara moved on to their next stop. They grabbed some food and hot chocolate at the cafe at Santa’s village. When the came out, it was dark outside, so they decide to take a sleigh ride around the property and see the Christmas light displays that were set up. Clara’s little eyes were wide with excitement as she saw the changing colors of the lights. “They’re so pretty! Like little stars!” she said. They talked and laughed all the way through the snow ride. When they were finished, it was pretty late so they decided to head home. On the way there, they heard the sounds of firetrucks behind them, so Blaine pulled over. They counted four fire trucks go by them. 

“Wow, there must be quite an accident.” Kurt said. 

“Yeah. It doesn’t look good.” Blaine replied. As they drove closer to Kurt and Clara’s apartment building, they realized that the fire trucks happened to be going the same way. Kurt developed a bad feeling in his stomach. They tried to get near the building but the street was blocked off. Blaine pulled over and Kurt rushed out of the car. He ran as far as he could towards the building. He gasped and tears filled his eyes as he saw the building. There were flames billowing out of the top of the building and black smoke filled the air. This couldn’t be happening...


	9. Chapter 8

The drive back to Blaine’s house was silent. Kurt sat silently staring out the window with tears clouding his vision. He couldn’t believe that this was happening...that this was real. Clara didn’t really seem to understand what was going on.

  
“Can’t the firemen put our house out and then we can go back?” She asked.

  
“It doesn’t work exactly like that honey.” Blaine told her when he saw that Kurt couldn’t even speak.

  
“Where are we going now?”

  
“We’re going to go to my house for now, okay?” Clara nodded in the backseat. She clutched the tiny baby doll that she had brought with them. Blaine realized that it very well may be her only toy left. When they got to Blaine’s apartment the three of them went inside and were greeted by Maggie.

  
“Go lay down.” Blaine told them dog strictly. The lab whimpered and did what she was told. “Hey Clara, how about we find something for you to wear as pajamas.”

  
“Okay,” the five year old replied with a yawn. Blaine took her hand, while Kurt simply took a seat onto Blaine’s couch. It was clear Kurt was in a little bit of shock. Blaine led Clara into his bedroom and pulled out a large black t-shirt.

  
“How about this? It can be a nightgown.” Clara nodded, her eyes getting sleepier and eyelids drooping. Blaine helped the little girl get ready and it was clear that she was so exhausted. “Are you ready for bed?” he asked. Clara nodded and lifted her arms up to Blaine. Figuring that meant she wanted to be picked up, Blaine did just that. He brought the little girl to his guest room and tucked her under the sheets. “Where’s my daddy?”

  
“He’ll be in soon okay. Just close your eyes. Everything is going to be okay.” he told her, even though that was a complete lie. Things were going to change for Kurt and Clara and not for the better. Clara shut her eyes and hugged her doll and began to go to sleep. Blaine tiptoed out of the room and went back into the living room to comfort Kurt. When he got there, Kurt was sitting straight up on the couch just staring at his living room wall.  
“Kurt…” Blaine said tentatively. “Do-do you wanna talk?” Kurt didn’t reply. Blaine walked closer and took a seat next to him on the couch. He placed a hand onto Kurt’s back and almost instantly, Kurt fell to pieces. The tears that had been on the verge of overflowing cascaded down his cheeks and his breathing started to get quicker. Blaine took Kurt into his arms and held him tightly. “It’s going to be okay.” he whispered. “Shh Shh, it’s going to be alright.” Kurt cried like that for a long time and Blaine just continued to hold him. Then, eventually, Kurt stopped crying and was silent, but he hadn’t moved from Blaine’s grasp.

  
“It’s not going to be okay.” Kurt whispered. “Everything -everything is going to be gone.”

  
“You don’t know that.” Blaine replied. “Some things could have survived. You have to try to have hope.”

  
“How can I have hope, Blaine? My daughter and I are homeless.” Kurt said.

  
“You can stay here as long as you like. You and Clara will never be on the streets. I will make sure of it.” Blaine told him. “We’ll figure something out. They’re just things. Let’s just be thankful that you and Clara weren’t in the building when the fire started.”

  
“I-I just can’t believe this is happening…”

  
“I know. Tomorrow, we’ll go over to the building and see if we’re allowed inside.” Blaine told him. “Tonight, there’s nothing more we can do other than go to sleep and prepare for tomorrow.”

  
“Clara?” Kurt said suddenly. It was like he had finally woken up from his daze and just realized that he once again had a child.

  
“She’s sleeping.” Blaine replied. “She’s okay. I promise. You can sleep with her if you want.”

  
“No. Don’t leave me. Never leave me.” Kurt replied. Blaine enveloped Kurt into another hug and kissed him on the forehead.

  
“Never.” he told him. Blaine stood up and led Kurt into his bedroom instead. After giving him a pair of pajamas, they crawled into bed together. Kurt placed his head onto Blaine’s stomach and Blaine wrapped his arms tightly around him. To took a while , but eventually both men fell asleep.

  
The next morning, things were strange. Kurt decided that Clara should go to school. Keeping her routine the same as much as they could was important. She didn’t have any other clothing so Kurt was forced to put Clara back in her outfit from yesterday. “Why can’t I go with you and Blaine?” Clara asked.

  
“The building is going to be dangerous honey.” Kurt told her. “Plus, you’ll have a better time at school. Aren’t you going to the Christmas play today?” he asked. Clara nodded. “See, you’ll have so much fun. And I’ll pick you up after school okay?” Once again she just nodded. “I love you.” Kurt told her before sending her in the front door of the school. Taking a deep breath, Kurt turned around and joined Blaine back on the sidewalk.

  
“Are you ready for this?” Blaine asked.

  
“No. But I don’t really have a choice.” Kurt said. They walked the short distance from Clara’s school to the apartment building. The area still reeked of smoke and there was caution tape. They saw a police officer and walked over to him. “Excuse me, I-I live - well I used to live in this building. Is anyone allowed in? I just want to check and see if any of our things made it.” The officer seemed hesitant but he eventually agreed.

  
“Did they determine what caused the fire?” Blaine asked.

  
“They think it was some faulty wiring.” The officer told him. “The building’s frame is still okay for now, but it won’t be livable anytime soon.”

  
“This is my apartment.” Kurt told the man. “We’ll let you know when we’re done.” The officer nodded and went back to his post. Kurt pushed the door open and gasped at what he saw. Much of the apartment was coated in ash. The kitchen was very damaged and didn’t look like much of anything was left. The living room looked the same. Everything smelled like smoke. They moved down the hallway towards Kurt and Clara’s rooms. Clara’s room was also badly damaged. Her bed was covered in ash. Blaine walked over to her closet and slowly opened the doors.

  
“Some of her clothes look okay. But they smell like smoke.” Blaine said. “We can try washing them, so she’ll have some things to wear.” Kurt nodded. He walked over to Clara’s metal toy chest and opened it. Some of the things inside were actually okay. There were a few barbies, some baby dolls and there at the bottom of the chest was a multicolored knit blanket.

  
“I-I can’t believe it survived.” Kurt said. He picked the blanket up and held it to his chest.

  
“What is it?” Blaine asked.

  
“Clara’s baby blanket. It was mine though when I was little. My mom made it for me...before she died.” Kurt told him. “She- um - had cancer. She passed when I was 8.”

  
“Kurt, I’m so sorry.”

  
“She’s the reason for Clara’s name.” Kurt said, still staring at the blanket.

  
“Her name was Clara?”

  
“No. Not exactly.” Kurt replied. “My mother’s name was Elizabeth, which is Clara’s middle name. But Clara comes from the Nutcracker. Christmas was my Mom’s absolute favorite season. She loved everything about it. The lights and the music and just being with family. Her favorite ballet was the Nutcracker and we’d go every Christmas season to see it. I always loved the show too and I thought Clara was the prettiest name.”

  
“It is a beautiful name.” Blaine replied. “I’ll start boxing up some of the usable things if you want to go and see your room.” Kurt nodded and handed the blanket over to Blaine. He then walked next door to his room. It looked a lot like Clara’s, but Kurt also had some clothing left. He walked to the back of his own closet and found a little box. It was somehow untouched. Kurt smiled for the first time since he found out about the fire. He opened it and inside were tons of pictures He took a seat on the floor and began looking through them. Blaine joined soon after and took a seat.

  
“She was pretty cute.” Blaine said, looking at a baby picture of Clara.

  
“Yeah, she was...well still is.” Kurt said with laugh. He continued to thumb through the pictures. He came to one of him and another man and stopped.

  
“Who is that?” Blaine asked.

  
“That-that’s Luca.” Kurt replied. “I was with him for four years. We decided to have Clara together and then at the last minute, he said that he just couldn’t. He wasn’t made to be a dad. He left when Rachel was nine months pregnant. Clara was born three weeks later. That was one of the hardest times in my life. I was so depressed but as soon as Clara was born, it was like I could breathe again. That little girl is everything to me...and that’s why I’m so careful with her. I haven’t wanted to bring anyone into her life because I never wanted her to feel that pain that I did when Luca left. So, I haven’t been with anyone...until you.”

  
“Kurt, I just want you to know that I-” Blaine paused. This was a little soon for this but he couldn’t help how he felt. “Kurt, I love you. And, I love Clara. She is such a special little girl. And I will never leave you like he did. I may have not been a part of the decision for Clara to come into the world, but in the short time that I’ve known her, she has wrapped me around her little finger and I want to give her and you the world.” Kurt smiled and dove into Blaine’s arms for a hug. He wasn’t ready to say “I love you” back, but he knew with time that he could get there.


	10. Chapter 9

Over the next few days, Kurt, Blaine and Clara adapted to living with one another and things were going very smoothly. They had transformed the guest room into Clara’s new room and Kurt opted to bunk with Blaine. Clara also fallen head over heels for Blaine’s dog, Maggie. The two were virtually inseparable. Sometimes they’d even find Clara lying in Maggie’s dog bed with her. It was honestly the cutest thing. There was only one downfall about their living situation. Even though Kurt had adapted to being a dad a long time ago, he was in a new relationship. And with that new relationship, there were certain things that he and Blaine wanted to do, but couldn’t because Clara was there. After a long week of work Kurt really needed a break, so he decided to reach out to Rachel and see if she could help. 

“Please Rach, we just need one night!” Kurt said over the phone. 

“So let me get this straight, you want me to take your daughter for the night, so that you can sex?” Rachel asked. Kurt paused. 

“Ummm yes.” 

“Is this really Kurt Hummel?” Rachel asked. “Because I think I have the wrong person.” 

“Rach please…” he whined. 

“Kurt calm down.” Rachel laughed. “Of course, I’ll take Clara. You know I love our girls nights. And I’m happy for you that you found someone who you want to do - that - with.” 

“God thank you.” Kurt replied. “You know I love Clara with all of my being. And Blaine loves Clara but god having children is such a cockblock” he whispered. 

“Understood. I’ll come by and pick Clara up later.” 

“Did I mention I love you?” Kurt said. 

“Yeah, yeah.” Rachel said. “I’ll see you later.” she added before hanging up the phone. After hanging up the phone, Kurt got himself ready for work and got Clara ready for school. He gave Blaine a quick peck on the lips with a promise of an unforgettable night before heading off to work. Kurt never would have thought that that shift would be the shift from hell. He had an angry family yell at him. Two patients with dementia that had no clue what was going on and a patient had thrown up on him. By the time he got home, all Kurt wanted to do was take a shower and drink. Clara was already gone though when he got home and Blaine was ready to go. 

“Oh great! You’re home.” Blaine said. “Rachel picked Clara up so we’re all set.” Kurt tried to talk but Blaine cut him off in his excitement. “I made a reservation at his really cool restaurant and I know of a few bars that are really nice-” Blaine suddenly stopped and looked over at Kurt who was leaning tiredly on the kitchen table. “You don’t want to do this do you?” 

“No-no! Of course I do. I’ve been looking forward to this.” Kurt said. 

“Kurt, I know you well enough to know when you are excited about something and you are anything but excited.” Blaine replied. 

“It’s not you. I promise.” Kurt told him. “I’ve just had the day from hell and I really just want to lie around with you and drink.” 

“Well, I think that can be arranged.” Blaine walked over to the cabinet and pulled out a bottle of tequila. “I got this as a gift. We can make this fun too.” 

“Are you sure?” 

“Positive.” Blaine said. “I just want to spend the night with you too.” He leaned in to kiss Kurt but he pulled away. 

“Hang on. I need to shower first. I got thrown up on today.” Kurt said. 

“Good call. Thanks for the heads up.” Blaine agreed. Kurt went off and showered and then came back. He took a seat on the couch and cuddled next to Blaine. 

“Will you pour me a shot?” he asked. 

“Of course.” Blaine replied. He opened the bottle of tequila and poured each of them a shot. “Bottoms up” he added, handing Kurt the one shot glass and taking the other for himself. They both knocked the shots back. 

“Us drinking tequila alone in your apartment is pretty sad.” Kurt said with a laugh. “We at least have to make this a game.” 

“What did you have in mind?” Blaine asked. 

“How about truth or dare?” Kurt replied. “If you do the dare or tell a truth, the other person drinks. But if you refuse, you have to drink.” 

“Sounds fun to me. But I get to go first.” Blaine said. “Truth or dare?” 

“Umm truth.” Kurt replied.

“What made you swipe right on me?” Blaine asked. 

“You want the truth.” Kurt asked with a smirk. 

“That is part of the game.” 

“I didn’t. Rachel swiped right after stealing my phone from me.” 

“Our relationship is a shame!” Blaine said, acting fake insulted. 

“Well regardless, drink up buddy.” Kurt laughed. Blaine poured himself a shot and knocked it back. “Alright my turn. Truth or dare.” 

“I will also do a truth.” 

“Okay, What is your favorite thing about me?” Kurt said with a smirk. 

“Your ass. Hands down.” 

“Blaine Anderson! I was thinking personality wise.” Kurt exclaimed. 

“Well you didn’t say that. Now drink up.” Kurt took the shot and grimaced. The game went on for a while until both Kurt and Blaine were about five shots deep. 

“Your turn.” Kurt slurred. 

“Dare!” Blaine said. 

“I dare you…” Kurt began. “To kiss me.” Blaine didn’t hesitate he dove right in and began to kiss Kurt. Things escalated quickly and before they knew it, they had moved in the bedroom. It hadn’t been the night that they had planned, but it was just as good. The morning however didn’t go as well as they planned.   
Kurt woke up and groaned. His head was pounding and the room was spinning. He looked next to him and saw that Blaine wasn’t in bed. Then he heard vomiting coming from the bathroom. Kurt groaned and pushed himself out of bed. He walked to the bathroom and found Blaine kneeling over the toilet breathing heavily. 

“Last night was a bad idea.” Kurt said. 

“All of it?” Blaine asked. 

“Well, not all of it. Mostly just the tequila part.” Kurt replied. 

“You can say that again.” Blaine replied. Suddenly, he went green and lurched back over the toilet to empty his stomach. Kurt walked in and wet a washcloth before putting it on Blaine’s next. Blaine wiped his mouth and looked up. “You don’t have to help me. I am so gross right now.” 

“You remember I’m a nurse right?” Kurt replied. “You’re not the first intoxicated person I’ve dealt with. I got thrown up on yesterday.” 

“God don’t mention vomit.” Blaine replied. “I’ve never been this hungover. Why aren’t you this bad?”

“Well you did have about three more shots than I did.” Kurt replied. 

“What why?” 

“You wouldn’t tell me your favorite care bears name.” Kurt told him.

“What? Why would you even ask that?” Blaine exclaimed. 

“You mentioned it first! You told me you couldn’t choose between them, which was an interesting fact to find out. Then you wanted to make Latkes. Are you jewish?” 

“No.” 

‘Then why did you want to make latkes?” 

“I don’t know. I was drunk.” Blaine exclaimed. “Oww, we have to stop yelling.” he added holding his head. 

“Well, do you think you’re done puking?” 

“God I hope so.” Blaine replied. “We definitely shouldn’t tell anyone about last night.” 

“It’s our secret. No one else will know about the tequila incident.” Kurt replied. “Now...I know this is strange, but can you actually make latkes because I kinda want some.” 

“Well, we could try.” Blaine replied. He got up from the ground and walked over to Kurt. “In all seriousness, last night was amazing.” 

“Definitely.” Kurt replied. “Well what I remember of it anyway.” he added. Blaine laughed and leaned in to try and kiss him. “Hold your horses vomit breath, brush your teeth and maybe then, you can have an all access pass to my lips. In the meantime, I’m going to figure out how to make latkes before Clara comes back.” Blaine smiled. He watched Kurt walk away, his eyes glancing down to his favorite part of Kurt, well physically anyway. The truth was there was so much that Blaine loved about Kurt that he didn’t even know how to put it all into words....the ass was merely a bonus.


End file.
